The University of Sheffield
Information for parents

Examination Results

Some questions you might have about results…

How will results be received by my son or daughter?

Typically, undergraduate students receive their results ‘online’ via their university account. Your son or daughter could print out what they see online, or request a transcript of their results (an official listing of all the results they have gained so far).

TIP: Due to the Data Protection Act, we cannot give out results on the telephone – even to your son or daughter themselves – as it is not possible to confirm who is actually telephoning us.

When your son or daughter checks their results they will get details of their grades, plus information on what to do next depending on their results and what year of study they are on; for example how to register for next year, how to re-take modules they have failed, or how to get guest tickets for their graduation ceremony.

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My son or daughter has got their results, but what do they mean?

Results board

Grades are regulated by the “rules” that govern exams – found in the University’s General Regulations for First Degrees. Most students’ results will be in the form of a numerical grade between 0 and 100, with a P (Pass) or F (Fail) next to it (although some courses do not return numerical grades). However, your son or daughter may have received a grade that isn’t like this.

Advice on what your son or daughter's grades may mean can be found on the Examination Marking Scale web page.

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The grade isn’t Pass or Fail, its something else....

Your son or daughter’s module results might be any of the following:

NA – this means the module has been ‘Not Assessed’ by the departmental Examination Board, ie your son or daughter has provided evidence which indicates that they were not fit to sit the exam/module at the time. For example your son or daughter may have had a medical condition, for which they provided a doctor’s note. In this case, your son or daughter will have the opportunity to resit the module as a ‘first attempt’ at another time, meaning the grade for the resit will not be capped at a bare pass of 40 (see What does “capping” of a result mean?).

DE – this means that your son or daughter’s result is currently ‘deferred’, ie the result was not available at the time the results were released. The reason for this might be because extra time is required to mark the paper, or the grade has to come from another institution or another country. If this happens, the grade will be added to your son or daughter’s record as soon as possible and they will get an email telling them to re-check their record.

MD – this means ‘module dropped’. This would appear on a student's record because they originally signed up for this module but then changed their mind and chose another one. If the change of modules happens outside the designated time, ie beyond the first three week of a semester, the module cannot be deleted from the central computer record, so MD makes it clear that no result will arrive for that module.

NC – this means ‘not completed’. Usually this result is used because your son or daughter didn’t complete, submit or take some or all of the assessment for the module, so a numerical grade could not be recorded. This is treated in the same way as a Fail.

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My son or daughter’s result must be wrong. Can we have it looked at again? Can we appeal the result?

Unfortunately sometimes exams and results don’t go according to plan and the grades received are lower than anticipated. If your son or daughter feels something went wrong when they took the exam or worked on the coursework, they can lodge an academic appeal, and the Taught Programmes Office administers this process. However, there have to be grounds for the appeal, for instance circumstances your son or daughter couldn’t put before the examiners at the time for good reason, such as an illness they didn’t know they had until later. Please note that the academic appeals process can not be used to question the academic judgement of the examiners, and appeals must be submitted to the University within the time limits specified within the Regulations.

Further information about this can be found on the Student Service Information Desk (SSiD) web pages relating to Academic Appeals Procedures.

TIP: When your son or daughter receives their results online, they should also see information on what the result means, and what they should do next.

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What do my son or daughter’s Year End results mean?

Year end results indicate whether or not a student can move up to the next level or year of study (we call this “Proceeding”). Year end results can be as follows:

For BSc, BA, BEng (typically 3 year degrees) students:

P = (Pass, permitted to proceed). Your son or daughter may proceed to the next level of their degree programme, usually in September.

PC = (Conceded Pass, permitted to proceed carrying fail). Your son or daughter may proceed to the next level of their degree programme in September, even though they failed one or more modules last academic session.

C = (Continue with studies next session). Your son or daughter is in a position to continue their studies next session, usually at the same level of study.

F = (Fail). Your son or daughter may not at present proceed to the next level of their degree programme in September, and they will need to retake some or all examinations during the resit period in August. If a Year End result of Fail is received after the August resits, then this means that your son or daughter may not proceed to the next level of their degree programme in September, and they are required to resit all the modules they haven’t passed during the next academic year (this is termed “repeating the year”).

FN (Fail - cannot proceed, progress under review). Usually used when a student has failed a repeated level of study and the Faculty in which the student is registered is reviewing their progress on their programme to date. This result might mean your son or daughter has to attend a meeting with Faculty staff to discuss why they have not performed as well as might have been expected. They will get further information about this when they check their exam results on line. The student is encouraged to consider their position carefully, seeking academic advice from their department/s as necessary.

DE (Deferred Result). Either the results for one or more of the student’s modules are not yet available, or the decision has not yet been taken on their progression. The decision will be made as soon as possible and your son or daughter will get an email or letter advising them when the decision has been made.

NA (Not Assessed). Although your son or daughter is not currently able to proceed to the next level of their degree programme in September, they may sit those examinations in which they have been recorded as Not Assessed as if for the first time either during the resit period in August or during the following academic session as agreed by the examining department/s. (see What does “capping” mean?).

For Integrated Undergraduate Masters (typically 4yrs) eg MChem, MPhys, MEng, MBiolSci, and MMath: As above, plus additionally those below:

M (Pass - proceed to Level 3 of Masters Programme). Your son or daughter may proceed to level 3 of their 'M' degree programme (eg MEng or MChem) in September.

MC (Conceded Pass - permitted to proceed to Level 3 of Masters Programme, carrying fail). Your son or daughter may proceed to the next level of their degree programme in September, even though they failed one or more modules last academic session, or have gained a weighted mean grade below that allowed by the Regulations. This progression is permitted only at the discretion of the Examiners.

P (Pass – permitted to proceed to Level 3 but at Bachelors level) A student on the Masters Programme who has not gained 120 credits at level 2, or whose weighted mean grade is below that allowed by the Regulations, is permitted to proceed but must complete at Bachelors Level.

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GraduationFinal Year Students:

My son or daughter is in their final year of study…what will happen to their results?

If your son or daughter is on the final year of their course, they still check their results online and, if they have passed, they will most likely receive a degree classification rather than a year end result. If your son or daughter has been awarded a degree, when they check their results they will then get details about their graduation ceremony and all the arrangements involved in planning their graduation.

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I have seen my son or daughter’s results, but what do Degree Classifications mean and how are they worked out?

Below is a list of the possible degree classification outcomes for undergraduate students. Further information on how classifications are calculated is available online.

Class I
Class II - Division I
Class II - Division II
Class III
Pass

Other possible outcomes for your son or daughter if they are a final year student are:

Fail (Final) – Students who fail their final year have the opportunity to resit failed modules but can only receive a Pass Degree. see My son or daughter is resitting level 3 or 4 (their final year) … is this different to level 1 or 2?)

NA (Final) – This means that your son or daughter has provided some evidence, eg a doctor’s note, which indicates that they were not fit to take an exam/module. Students who get NA (Final) as their final outcome have the opportunity to resit the modules classed as “NA” as if sitting them for the first time and therefore the resit grade will not be capped at a bare pass of 40. (see What does “capping” of a result mean?).

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I think my son or daughter might owe a library fine and is in their final year of study…does this matter?

This may seem like a strange question when thinking about examination results. However, checking that your son or daughter doesn’t owe any money to the University is quite important if they are in their final year of study and expect to graduate.

Part of the work of the TPO during the examinations process involves checking, clarifying, and monitoring the results submitted by the departments. We make sure that the University’s Regulations have been followed, we get approval for the results from a Faculty Officer, and we check whether graduating students owe money to the University – if they owe money they aren’t allowed to graduate. They are given plenty of reminders to settle debts leading up to the ceremony, but even a small library fine must be paid. Any money owed by your son or daughter at this point will prevent them from being awarded their degree and may result in them missing their graduation ceremony.

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